Washington, DC – “Could there be a dumber tax than this where the cost of compliance equals the amount of money that the government collects from this?,” Congressman Roscoe Bartlett asked at a hearing today by the Subcommittee on Economic Growth, Tax and Capital Access of the House Small Business Committee about “Planning for the Death Tax: Can Small Businesses Survive?” Congressman Bartlett emphasized, “I support repealing the death tax, but there aren’t enough votes in the Congress for that to happen. However, all of us privileged to serve in the Congress shouldn’t let our perfect preferences prevent us from improving what we all find unacceptable. That is why I urge my colleagues to carefully consider a revenue neutral proposal by Jack Fitzgerald and ASSET that would reduce the economic damage to the United States from the destructive effects of the estate tax on America’s small businesses.” Congressman Bartlett is a senior member of the House Small Business Committee.

Congressman Bartlett said, “The current structure of the estate tax forces the diversion of time and money by America’s smartest small business owners when they’re alive and the sale of many family-owned businesses, farms and ranches when they die. The estate tax kills jobs in our communities and destroys families’ dreams of building on the success of previous generations. During the hearing, Congressman Bartlett noted, “The case for tax reform is dramatically illustrated by reviewing the data cited by the Joint Economic Committee in May of 2006. And what they found generally was that the cost of compliance was just about equal to the revenues the federal government collected from this.”

Congressman Bartlett took note during the hearing of testimony submitted for the record by Mr. Jack Fitzgerald, owner of Fitz Auto Mall dealerships, and founder of Americans Standing for the Simplification of the Estate Tax (ASSET). Congressman Bartlett said, “I commend Jack Fitzgerald for studying this issue very closely and founding ASSET to develop proactive and innovative thinking to find common sense alternatives to the current estate tax that will support rather than cripple America’s family-owned businesses.”

“The current structure of the estate tax forces the sale of many family-owned businesses, farms and ranches. The estate tax kills jobs in our communities and destroys families’ dreams of building on the success of previous generations. You know if an enemy had the ability to permeate our minds and induce us to do something really hurtful to ourselves he might find it difficult to better than the death tax…We have heard that the estate tax has disastrous consequences and is the most unfair tax that the government imposes. At a time when we in government should be removing obstacles to small business growth, the estate tax presents a roadblock to small business survival.

…”The case for tax reform is dramatically illustrated by reviewing the data cited by the Joint Economic Committee in May of 2006. And what they found generally was that the cost of compliance was just about equal to the revenues the federal government collected from this. Could there be a dumber tax than this where the cost of compliance equals the amount of money that the government collects from this?

“But there are solutions and I’m particularly pleased to recognize Mr. Jack Fitzgerald who is here today. Jack is a prominent Maryland business man and friend of mine who has studied the estate tax problem from the business point of view. He founded Americans Standing for the Simplification of the Estate Tax (ASSET) in 2010 in order to change the collection method for the estate tax. He believes that as long as the IRS requires the estate tax to be paid, there is a simpler, more compassionate way to collect the tax that would reduce the impact of the tax and avoid the loss of the family business when they are already dealing with loss of a loved one. I would like to congratulate him for putting together a grassroots group that includes private businesses, family farms, and individuals. I think that the ASSET solution as a bridge to phasing out the estate tax is well worth studying and I’m pleased that the committee has agreed to include it in the record of this hearing.”

Americans Standing for the Simplification of the Estate Tax was founded in 2010 in order to change the collection method for the Estate Tax. The group includes private businesses, family farms, and individuals who believe that so long as the IRS reqires the estate tax be paid, there is a simpler collection method that allows the same cash flow to the treasury, yet doesn’t cause jobs losses or the closure of businesses.